


Turn Around

by amiraculousladybug



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Identity Reveal, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-27
Updated: 2016-01-27
Packaged: 2018-05-16 16:20:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5832364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amiraculousladybug/pseuds/amiraculousladybug
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While fighting an akuma, Ladybug and Chat Noir get trapped together and are about to run out of power. Chat is willing to let Ladybug see his true identity, but will Ladybug return the favor?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Turn Around

Marinette wasn't terribly surprised when another akuma made its appearance at school.

Really, it was almost to be expected when a younger student's project for the science fair had threatened to steal first place away from Chloé. Marinette was willing to bet money that Chloé had sabotaged the project in question to ensure her own victory. She would sink to any levels necessary.

Whatever the cause, the Dissector was on a rampage through the school and trapping students in giant petri dishes, and Ladybug was getting sick of Chat Noir's science puns. They had been fighting this akuma for nearly half an hour now, with the majority of that time being spent dodging flying petri dishes and slides. Chat had spent the entire half hour making every single science-themed pun imaginable. It was time to wrap this up, both for the sake of the possessed student and for the sake of Ladybug's sanity.

She was just about to tell Chat to go around behind the Dissector for a sneak attack when another flying petri dish went whirling through the air, this one managing to catch her partner. Chat scrambled to climb out, and a lid snapped shut over the top to trap him inside.

Okay, time for a new plan.

“Lucky Charm!” She tossed her yo-yo up in the air and caught the item that fell. She barely had time to register what it was—a nail file, of all things—before something heavy slammed into her from the side, sending her sprawling to the floor. The file was knocked out of her hand. A moment later, she heard the click of a lid sealing shut, and she looked up to find herself stuck in another of the Dissector's petri dishes. The Dissector himself gave a satisfied nod and left the room, presumably to terrorize the rest of the student body.

“Great,” Ladybug grumbled. How on earth was she supposed to get out of this thing? Her Lucky Charm was gone, wasted as soon as she had lost it. She only had five minutes before her transformation would wear off and she would _really_ be in for it. She turned around to see if there might be anything behind the dish that she could use to her advantage—and found herself face to face with Chat Noir.

He gave her a cheeky grin and waved. “Hello, my lady. He's not a very cultured guy, is he? Trapping us like this without any warning.”

Ladybug gaped at him. “How did you get in here? I thought he'd already trapped you in another one of his dishes!”

Chat gestured to the opposite side of the room where he had been caught. Ladybug looked and saw a large, brown-tinged hole in the side of the other petri dish. “Cataclysm. He was going to trap you while you were using Lucky Charm, so I broke out to get you out of his line of fire.”

Ladybug groaned. “Yes, and much good that did us,” she observed sarcastically. “He still caught me, and now we're both stuck in here with no Lucky Charm and no Cataclysm.” She plopped down on the bottom of the dish, her arms folded over her chest.

Chat watched her with an odd expression, and then sat down opposite her with his back towards her. “I won't look when you transform,” he promised. “We can recharge and then I'll bust us out of here. I've got food in my bag for emergencies if you need any for your kwami.”

She turned around so that she was no longer facing him. “Thanks.”

“No problem.”

Both of their Miraculous beeped in unison.

“My lady?”

“Yes?”

“Have you … ever thought we might … know each other? Without the masks?”

Ladybug buried her face in her hands. Of course he would ask. Chat seemed to have a constant need to ask if she would trust him with her secret identity. “This is really not the time, Chat.”

There was a long pause. She wondered if she had come across as snippish. “I'm sorry,” Chat apologized.

_Beep._

“It's fine.” _I know you're curious_.

She was just afraid of disappointing him, that was all.

Chat was quiet for a while.

_Beep._

“My lady, I … don't mind if you know who I am.”

Ladybug could tell that wasn't what he had originally wanted to say, but she didn't press him. “That wouldn't be fair to you.”

“It's not a question of fairness.”

She bit her lip. “Do you _want_ me to know?”

There was another pause.

 _Beep_.

“Yes,” he admitted quietly.

Ladybug hesitated—there was a _reason_ she had said they shouldn't reveal their identities to one another, a reason that had nothing to do with her fear of disappointing him. But he seemed so sure. So ready to show her what was under the mask.

Ladybug turned around to face Chat Noir.

 _Beep_.

There was a sudden flash of light as both of their transformations wore off. Marinette blinked the spots out of her vision and saw a very familiar boy in front of her, still turned with his back to her to respect her secret identity. “ _Adrien?_ ” she said before she could stop herself.

He very nearly turned around, only catching himself just in time to avoid seeing her. “So we do know each other?” His voice was tinged with hope.

Marinette struggled not to freak out. Adrien, her crush, the sweet, kind, reserved boy who sat in front of her in class, was _Chat Noir?_ Was this fate's idea of a joke?

Adrien didn't seem bothered by her lack of response, simply pushing his bag towards her. “There's cheese in there you can use for your kwami to recharge.”

Marinette raised an eyebrow even though he couldn't see it. “Cheese?”

Well, that was one coherent word, at least. That was a start.

“Does your kwami eat something else?” Adrien asked. He seemed remarkably calm despite the fact that Ladybug's secret identity was sitting right behind him.

“Cookies,” Marinette answered. She opened her bag to allow Tikki access to the small stash she kept in case of akuma attacks at school (there had been so many to date that it just seemed like common sense to bring cookies for recharging). “But … thank you. And, um … you can turn around.”

Instead of turning immediately like she expected, Adrien hesitated, his head tilting to one side. “Are you sure?”

She bit her lip. _Please, let this end well_. “I'm sure.”

Adrien turned around, his eyes lighting up immediately with recognition. He stared. His mouth dropped open. He tried to form words, but nothing came out. He resumed gawking. Marinette writhed in embarrassment. Maybe she shouldn't have let him turn around.

Finally, Adrien was able to manage a single awestruck word. “Marinette?”

She nodded.

“You're Ladybug?”

She nodded again. She was too embarrassed for words at this point.

“You're—” He hesitated. “—You're my lady?”

She had to repress a squeak. Chat's words coming out of Adrien's mouth was too much.

There was a gentle tap from Tikki, signaling that she was ready to transform again.

“Spots on,” Marinette breathed in relief, and once again her spotted mask stood between her and Adrien. She could at least _pretend_ to be thinking clearly as Ladybug. She could try to wrap her mind around the whole Adrien-is-Chat-Noir thing later, once the Dissector was cleansed.

“Let's go, kitty. We've got an akuma to take care of.”

Adrien gave her a _very_ familiar, cheeky grin she had only ever seen on him as Chat Noir. “Of course, my lady.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Another fic request originally posted on Tumblr. Like the others, you can find it via the ML fanfic link on my blog (URL is jesus-otaku).


End file.
